Grids and Paragraphs argues that the introduction of paragraphs in dividing the space of the text echoed the transformation of the city as it came to be organized by grids. In as much as it is composed of and about texts as they relate to architecture, it looks at how texts conceive of and depict the city, as well as how texts are material products, built and populated with words and spaces, which are in turn shaped by the city.
Paragraphs divide the text in a similar way to the division of space to grid-planned land plots. As much as the page has a body and margin, land plots have built forms and retention spaces separating them. Paragraphs and Grids can be both seen as parts of an otherwise extended whole-continuum; the text in the case of the first and urban space in the case of the second. Punctuation, on the other hand, regulates the flow of the text, as analogous to traffic in the city space. In other words, it brings together, separates and distinguishes texts in order to better perform the meaning.
